Drug Abuse
What is drug abuse?
Drug abuse is similar to drug addiction in that once a person begins to abuse drugs they can quickly find themselves becoming addicted.
Drug abuse is the use of illegal drugs, or can be the use of prescription drugs when a person begins to take more than prescribed. Many individuals become addicted to prescription drugs and the doctor may keep providing the drug but not in the quantity desired. The person will then find other ways in which to obtain the drug.
A person abusing drugs may or may not become addicted, however, in most cases, these go hand in hand. Once a person begins abusing drugs by using them to forget their problems, relieve stress, or to enjoy that “high”, they begin to depend on the drug to get through the day. This is when it becomes a drug addiction.
Drug addiction is a compulsion that causes the seeking and use of a drug no matter what the consequences may be. Once a person begins to abuse drugs, the craving takes control and the craving for the drug is more important than life itself.
This means if a the drug was in a bag sitting on the railway track with a train heading straight towards the bag, the person that is addicted will walk in front of that train to get the bag of drugs, not considering the consequences to their own safety.
How drug abuse affects the body
Drug abuse affects individuals differently according to the type of drug they may be abusing, however, the drugs work by tapping into the way in which the brain communicates to the rest of the body, such as the way the brain sends, receives, and processes the information.
Drugs have two ways in which they can interrupt the brain processing system, which includes by imitating the way the brain controls this process and by over-stimulating the way the brain works.
Marijuana contains what are called neurotransmitters, which have a similar structure to the chemical messengers that the brain produces. This drug along with heroin uses these neurotransmitters to fool the receptors in the brain, which will activate nerve cells and send the wrong or different messages.
Cocaine and Methamphetamine cause the nerve cells to release the neurotransmitters that the brain produces, except in much larger quantities, causing a rush or high. In some cases, as well as releasing neurotransmitters, these types of drugs may affect the neuro chemical balance of the brain, disrupting the communication pattern of the brain and leading to behaviour similar to that found in people with mental illnesses such as manic depressive disorders.
How drug abuse affects people physically
Once again the way in which the drug affects a person physically has a lot to do with the drug itself.
Stimulants can give a person quite a bit of energy and they will be “up”, but as the drug begins to wear off the person may feel very depressed and have no energy.
Physical signs of drug abuse include:
(With Stimulants)
- Cycles of increased energy
- Restlessness
- Inability to sleep
(With opiates, benzodiazepines, and barbiturates)
- Unusually slow movements
- Unusual, slow speech
- Slow reaction time
- Confusion
- Disorientation
Other drug abuse symptoms may include:
- Rapid weight loss or weight gain
- Cycles of too much sleep
- Changes in the type of clothing worn (eg like wearing long sleeved shirts to hide injection sites)
- Sinusitis (with snorted drugs)
- Nosebleeds (with snorted drugs)
- Persistent cough (with smoked drugs)
- Bronchitis (with smoked drugs)
- Coughing up excessive mucus (with smoked drugs)
- Coughing up blood (with smoked drugs)
- Severe dental problems (often seen more with methamphetamine)
How drug abuse affects people mentally
The most common ways drug abuse affects people mentally include:
- Abnormal calmness
- Abnormal unresponsiveness
- Cycles of unusually talkative or “up” mood, often associated with unlimited energy
- Depression
- Delusions
- Increased anger
- Increased anxiety
- Increased irritability
- Indifference
- Suspicion
- Temporary phobias
- Temporary hallucinations
How drug abuse affects the family
Living with a person who is abusing drugs can put an enormous strain on the family, often causing the family unit to break down, since drug abuse can lead to marital problems, physical abuse of family members, poor work performance, and in many cases the loss of a job.
Drug abuse disrupts the normal flow of a family with most family members afraid to say or do anything that might let others know about the drug abuser. In many families, the families begin to cover up, give the person money, and even deny the person has a problem.
How drug abuse affects the unborn child
Pregnant women may not realize the problems they are passing on to their unborn child which can include:
- Low birth weight
- Addicted babies that go through withdrawal after birth
- Fetal alcohol syndrome
- Physical, developmental, and psychological abnormalities
Learn more about drug addiction, drug addiction treatment, & drug rehab.
